Are Swifties in a Cult?

Earlier This Year We Tested MAGA and Found it a Cult; What About Taylor Swift?

Let’s be honest. Taylor Swift is the current Ms. America. She’s the most popular singer currently on the planet. Her “Eras” tour is set to become the largest selling concert tour ever. Local economies where she hosts shows routinely announce huge bumps in hotels, restaurants, bars and other leisure entertainment when she comes around. She seems like a particularly nice person.

This past weekend she seemed to go public with a relationship with Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce. They appeared in public a couple places, she showed up in Kelce’s box seats and they left together smirking for the cameras. Swift received more attention than the quarterback for the opposing team the Chiefs played (you’d be forgiven if you didn’t know that part of the story since he didn’t really appear in any highlights of the game).¹ And then I saw this:

The Swifties are loading up on Travis Kelce merch.

Earlier this year, we went through an in depth not-quite-but-close scientific analysis on whether MAGA was a cult and conclusively landed on the side it was. What about the Swifties? Are THEY in a cult? Inquiring minds want to know.

So, the good people at PurpleAmerica took it upon ourselves to apply the same standards we used previously to Taylor Swift fans. We use the same 12 point standards that we used for MAGA. Enjoy.

The Leader is the Ultimate Authority

The grand unifying thing about the Swifties is their complete and total adoration of everything Taylor Swift. Most cults use a pyramid type method of structure but in the Swifties’ case, its an extremely high tower or pedestal, to which there is nobody even close to the level Taylor is at.

Cult? Oh yeah, pretty definitive there.

The Group Supresses Skepticism/Outside Opinion

I don’t know if they supress it so much as they just flat out deflect or ignore any criticism of Swift at all. Trying to convince a Swiftie that Taylor may have made a bad song or two is like trying to convince someone they shouldn’t take their shoes off on a flight. They won’t fight you on it or even try and stop you from arguing it. They’d just either ignore it like it was never said or simply say “Well, that’s your opinion.

Cult? Not really.

Disassociation with Non-Believers

Swift fans cross the spectrum from mothers, daughters, sisters and wives to singing policemen.

Do they associate with non Taylor Swift fans? Sure. In this regard, they seem pretty healthy.

Cult: Nope. Not even close.

The Group De-Legitimizes Former Members

There are no Swifties who just “like” her half way. When they’re in, they’re in all things Swift 110%. This means loving what Taylor loves, using what Taylor uses and adoring Taylor’s boyfriends as some vicarious crush. God forbid someone break up with Taylor Swift or they will feel the wrath of an entire world of Swift fans. They don’t necessarily disassociate with non-believers, but BOY do they really hate anyone who get’s on Taylor’s bad side.

Cult: Eeehhh…..no, but its iffy there.

The Group Relies on Shame or Fear

Swifties brag about how many times they’ve seen her. They know her songs by heart. They follow her relentlessly on instagram and social media. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an instance where they made any fans feel insignicant or shameful for not doing something or seeing something or even disliking a Swift song.

Cult: Nada.

The Group is Paranoid About the Outside World

Swift fans are totally enmeshed with the outside world. So much so, that they completely and totally take over whole cities when she comes to town. It’s a traveling circus and they’re all along for the ride. If there was no longer any Taylor Swift, they’d seriously have to reconsider what they do with their lives. Maybe then they’d be afraid of the outside world, but until that happens, Taylor gets them off their couches and out into society. In that sense, she’s a positive influence.

Cult: Weird, yes. Cult, not really.

The Leader is Above the Law

Swift got her start in country music as a teenager. Her earlier hits were the kind of pining songs young girls love; she sang about those feelings all young girls have. Since then Swift’s grown up and matured but never outside of a PG-13 rating really. In a way it’s refreshing; at a time when so many celebrities go out of their way to almost court negative press and disassociate themseles from being too wholesome, Swift has kind of reveled in it.

Cult: You can’t say she’s above the law when she doesn’t seem to be anywhere close to ever breaking it.

There Is No Financial Transparency

It is true, there is little financial transparency when it comes to Swift. That is not necessarily the fault of Swift, but is more a product of the record industry as a whole and even moreso the oodles of advertising and corporate sponsorships throwing gobs of money at the girl. On top of that, we’re not even touching the cottage industry of knockoff merchandise and the forementioned “Taylor Swift Effect” on local economies where she has concerts.

Cult? Who knows on this one.

The Group is Elitist

This criteria is meant in the sense people in cults think “They are the only ones who can…”, like they are the elite.

When it comes to Swift, Taylor is pretty generous with her music with other musicians. In fact, she helped discover Ed Sheeran, and has written songs for other artists. Her fans usually have a diverse set of artists they also like.

There is this kind of faux publicity fights that pop up from time to time that pit fans of one singer against fans of Taylor Swift. In truth, I’ve never thought much of them other than they were silly.

Cult: Doesn’t seem to be.

The Group Uses Brainwashing Methods

Going to a Swift concert is an experience. They have so many makeup booths and things to doll up young girls its a little distressing. The whole process is catered to get little girls hooked into the consumerism of beauty products and materialism early and it works. Many a pre-teen Swift fan is now an adult Swift fan, and they are largely allegiant to those brands they used when they first experienced putting makeup on.

Cult: I put this more on the merchandisers, but Swift is complicit here.

Direction to Commit an Immoral Act and Commission of It

I’m pretty sure Taylor Swift never publicly directed her audience to commit an immoral act. I’m not sure she ever really would. It’d be interesting to see what would happen if she did.

Cult: We’ll give her the benefit of the doubt there.

The Unifying Cause is Ultimately an Empty Promise

When you buy into being a Swiftie, whether its buying her music or going to her concerts or whatnot, there is an implicit promise that Swift will do her darnedest to entertain you. That’s what being an entertainer is all about.

In that regard, Swift rarely doesn’t deliver. I have met people who aren’t even Swift fans take their kids to a Swift concert and were completely blown away at the high level of quality in the show. In every aspect, her concerts were entertaining. Earlier this year, after Ticketmaster bungled ticket sales and prices were through the roof, many wondered if she cold deliver; after the first couple concerts there was no longer a question mark, there was an exclamation point that she could.

Cult? There’s no Empty Promise here. Swift delivers on every count.

VERDICT: Of the twelve individual criteria, Swift and her legions of fans really only meet the criteria on two, maybe two and a half of them. That’s a far cry from cult territory. In fact, it’s the kind of fandom that we’ve seen time and time again since the Beatles. It’s more extreme hype and marketing more than anything. It would be one thing if she were just a mediocre talent, but she genuinely seems to have earned the prodigious accolades she receives.

Either that, or I’m a lot more fearful of upsetting the Taylor Swift mob than I am MAGA.

PurpleAmerica Recommended Stories

You may be skeptical about the “Taylor Swift Economy” but no less an authority as The Federal Reserve Board has documented it. You can read more about it here:

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/taylor-swift-eras-tour-boosted-economy-tourism-federal-reserve-how-much-money-made/

PurpleAmerica’s Cultural Corner

I’d feel almost negligent if I had a story about Taylor Swift and not put a few Taylor Swift videos up here.

The first one I learned to play on guitar was this one:

My favorite to play on guitar (because its kind of the easiest one) is this one:

And although when this one came out I kind of hated it, its a complete earworm and I’ve come around to it, just like that cop did.

PurpleAmerica’s Obscure Fact of the Day

Taylor Swift’s first charting hit was a country song from her debut album, about another country superstar, Tim McGraw.

She was only fifteen at the time she recorded it.

PurpleAmerica’s Final Word on the Subject

I have to confess, I’m pretty indifferent to Taylor Swift and the mania around her. I’d rather talk about pretty much anything else.

Look what you made me do.

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Footnotes and Fun Stuff

1. It was Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears.